2016 AUDI A3 CABRIOLET check oil

<( co ..... N
" N ..... 0 r--. > 00
Checking and Filling
Gasoline engine compartment overview
The most important check points .
Fig. 161 Typical location of the rese rvoir , engine oil dipst ick, and engine oil filler opening
(D Coolant expansion tank (-L) .....
@
®
©
®
©
(J)
®
Engine oil dipstick ............ .
Engine oil filling opening
('er.) . .
Brake fluid reservoir (0))
Battery(+) under a cover
Body ground point(-)
Washer fluid reservoir
(O) ..... .
Fuse housing . .... .... ....... .
195
193
193
197
199
202
240
The engine oil filler opening and the dipstick
(items ® and @)
¢ fig. 161 may be located in a
different area depending on engine version.
A WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS before check­
ing anything in the engine compartment
¢page 188.
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used must conform to exact speci­
fications.
The service interval d isplay in the instrument
cluster of your vehicle will inform you when it is
time for an oil change. We recommend that you
have your oil changed by an authorized Audi Serv­
ice Advisor.
If you have to top off the oil between oil changes,
us e the Audi oil quality standard specified in the
tab~ .
~
191

Check ing and F illing
Audi oil quality standard
Gas olin e
VW 502 00 or
engi ne vw 50400
A udi reco mmend s
~Castrol I jgl[J,'fE{g ?r,w.:..~J ri, '.IA!,
Audi rec ommends Longlif e high perform ance
engi ne oil from Au di Genuin e Parts
Using the proper engine oil is important for the
functionality and service life of the engine. Your
engine was factory-filled with a h igh-quality oil
which can usually be used throughout the entire
yea r.
(D Note
Your Limited New Vehicle Warranty does not
cover damage or malfunctions due to failure
to follow recommended maintenance and use
requirements as set forth in the Audi Owner's
Manual and Warranty & Maintenance booklet .
- Use only a high qual ity eng ine oil that ex-
pressly complies with the Audi oil quality
standard specified for your vehicle's engine .
Using any other oil can cause serious engine
damage.
- Do not mix any lubricants or other additives into the engine oil. Doing so can cause en­
gine damage.
@ Tips
If you need to add oil and there is none availa ­
ble that meets the Audi oil quality standard
your engine requires, you may add a total of
no more than 0.5 quart/liter of a h igh-quality
"synthet ic"oil that meets the following speci­
fications.
- Vehicles w ith gasoline eng ine: ACEA A3 or
API SM with a viscosity grade of SAE OW-30,
SAE 5W-30 or SAE 5W-40.
- For more information about engine o il that
has been approved for your vehicle, please
contact either your authorized Audi dea ler
or Aud i Custome r Relat ions at
1 (800) 822- 2834 or visit ou r web site at
www.audiusa.com or www .aud icanada.ca.
192
· Eng ine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all of
its moving parts.
In order to provide effect ive lubricat ion and cool­
i ng of internal engine components, all internal
combust ion eng ines consume a certa in amount
of oil. Oil consumption var ies from engine to en­
gine and may change sign ificantly over the life of
the engine . T ypically, engines w ith a specified
break -in period (see¢
page 65) consume more
oi l during the break-in period than they consume
after oil consumption has stabilized.
U nder normal cond itions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity o f
the oil , the RPM (revo lutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient tem­ perature and road conditions. Further factors are
the amount of o il dilution from water condensa­
tion or fuel residue and the oxidation level of the
o il. As any engine is subject to wear as mileage
builds up, the o il consumption may increase over
ti me unt il replacement of wo rn compo nents may
become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no standard rate of o il consumption can be estab­
li shed or spec ified . T he re is no alte rnative to reg­
u la r and freq uent checki ng of the oi l level, see
Note.
If the yellow engine oil level warning symbo l II
in the instrument cluster lights up, you sho uld
chec k the o il level as soon as possible
¢
page 193. Top off the o il at your earlies t con­
venience
¢ page 193.
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
¢page 188.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient oil level is likely to
cause severe damage to the engine.
IJII,

<( co ..... N
" N ..... 0
" > 00
(D Tips
- The oil pre ssure w arning display. i s not
an indicator of the oil level. Do not rel y on
it. Instead , check the oil level in your en­
gine at regular inte rval s, preferably each
t ime you refuel , and alway s befo re going
on a long trip.
- If y ou have the impressio n your engine con­
sumes excessive amounts of oil, we recom­
mend that you cons ult an autho rized Aud i
dealer to have the cause of your concern
properly d iagnosed . Keep in mind that the
accurate measurement of oil consump tion
requi res great care and may take some
time. An a uthorized Audi dea ler has instruc ­
tions about how to measure oil consump ­
tion accurately .
Checking the engine oil level and adding oil
Fig. 16 2 O il dip stick (example) : ch ec king th e eng in e oil
l evel
Fi g. 1 63 Engine co mpartme nt: e ngin e oil f ille r ope ning
c ov er
0
N
-N
"' ::l
Read and follow all WARNINGS before checking
anyth ing in the engine compartment
c:> page 188, Working in the engine comport­
men t .
Checking and Filling
Checking the engin e oil level
- Park the vehicle o n a level su rface .
- Shut the eng ine off when it is wa rm. Wait ap-
proximate ly two minutes so that the eng ine oil
can flow back i nto the oil pan .
- Open the hood
c:> page 190.
- Remove the oil d ipstick <=:> page 191, fig . 161 ,
wipe it off w ith a clea n clot h and inse rt it all the
way in aga in .
- Remove the oil d ipstick again and then read the
oil leve l
c:> table on page 193.
-Add engine o il if necessary .
Areas on the oi l dipstick
c:> fig . 162 .
CD If the engine oil level is just before the
mark ing
CD , then eng ine oil must be added .
See
c:> (D .
@ Do not add eng
ine oil.
Adding engine oil
- Unscrew the cap 'l=:7: c:> fig. 163 for the engine
oil filling opening
c:> poge 191, fig. 161.
- Carefully add 0.5 quart (0 .5 liter) of the correct
oil
c:> poge 191.
-Check the oi l level aga in after two minu tes.
- Add a smaller amo unt of engine oil if necessa -
ry. The marking @ <=:>
fig. 162 must no t be ex­
ceeded
c:> (!) .
-Scr ew the eng ine oil filler cap 'l=:7: and slide the
dipstick a ll the way in.
.&_ WARNING
=
- When adding engine o il, do not let oil drip
onto hot engine components. This increases
the risk of a fire.
- You must sea l the cap on the oil filler open­
ing correct ly so that oil does not leak out
onto the hot engine and ex haust system
when the engine is runn ing , because this is
a fire hazard.
- Always clean sk in thoroughly if it comes into
contact w ith eng ine o il.
(D Note
- The engine o il leve l must not be under the
marking
CD c:> fig. 162, because t his increas-
es the r isk of engine damage.
111>
193

Check ing and F illing
- After adding engine oil, the o il level must
not be above the marking@~
fig. 162, be­
cause this increases the risk of cata lytic con­
verter and/or eng ine damage. Do not start
the engine. Contact an authorized Audi
dealer or authorized Audi Service Fac ility to
have excess engine oil extracted if necessa­
r y .
- Do not mix any additional lubricants into
the engine o il. Damage cause by such addi­
tives is not cove red by the war ranty .
@ For the sake of the environment
-Engine o il should never enter the sewe r sys­
tem or come into contact with the ground
under any circumsta nces.
- Pay attention to legal requirements when
d ispos ing of empty oil containe rs .
(D Tips
The engine oil consumption may be up to 0.5
quart/600 m iles (0.5 liter/1,000 km), de­
pending on d rivi ng s tyle and operating condi­
tions. Consumption may be higher du ring the
fi rst 3,00 0 miles (5, 000 km). Be cause of this,
t he engine oil leve l m ust be chec ke d r egular ­
ly. It wo uld be best to check each time you re ­
fue l your vehicle and before long drives .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that hove your oil changed by an
authorized Audi dealer or a qualified service sta ­
tion .
Before you check a nyth ing in the eng ine compart­
men t,
alway s read and heed all WARNINGS
~ page 188.
The engine oil must be changed accord ing to the
i n tervals specified in your Warran ty
& Mai nte­
nance booklet . This is very importan t because the
lubricating p roperties of o il diminish gradually
during normal vehicle use.
Under some c irc ums tances the eng ine o il sho uld
be changed more frequently. Change oil more o f­
ten if yo u drive most ly short distances, operate
the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominantly
stop-and-go traffic cond it ions, or have your vehi-
194
de where temperatures remain be low free zin g
for extended periods.
Dete rge nt additives in the oi l will make fres h oil
l ook dark a fter the engine has been r unning for a
short time . This is normal and is no t a reason to
change the oi l more often than recommende d.
Bec ause of t he pr oblem of prope r dispos al, along
with t he speci al tools and ne ce ssary expertise re­
quired, we strongly recommend that yo u have
your oi l changed by an authorized
Audi dealer or
a q ua lified serv ice station .
If you choo se to change your oil your self , please
note the fo llowing important information:
_& WARNING
To reduce the risk of persona l injury if you
must change the eng ine oil in you r vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protect ion .
- To reduce the r isk o f bu rns from hot engine
oil, let t he engine cool down to the touch.
-
- When removin g the oil dr ain plug with yo ur
fingers, stay as far away as possible. Always
keep your forearm pa rallel to the gro und to
he lp prevent hot oil from running down your
arm.
- Drain the oil into a conta iner designed fo r
this purpose, one la rge enough to hold at
least the tota l amount of oil in your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous. Keep it well out of
the reach of children .
- Continuous contact wit h used engine o il is
ha rmf ul to your skin . Always protect your
skin by washing oil off thoroughly with soap
and water .
{[) Note
Neve r mix oil additives with yo ur engine oil.
These additives can damage your engine and
adverse ly affect you r Audi Limited New Vehi­
cle Warranty .
@) For the sake of the environment
-Be fore chang ing your oi l, first make sure
you know where you can p roperly dispose of
the used oil.
Ill-

<( co ..... N
" N ..... 0 r--. > 00
-Always dispose of used engine oil prope rly .
Do not dump it on garden soi l, wooded
areas, into open streams or down sewage
drains.
- Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a used
engine oil collection facility in your area, or
contact a serv ice stat ion.
Cooling system
Coolant
The engine coo ling system is filled wi th a mixture
of purified water and coolant additive at the fac ­
tory. This coo lant must not be not changed.
The coolant leve l is moni to red throug h the . in ­
d icator light
q page 16 . Howeve r, we do recom­
mend occasiona lly checking the coo lant level
manually.
If you m ust add coo lant, use a m ix ture of water
an d coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant additive
with d isti lled water is recommended.
Coolant additive
The coolan t additive is made of anti-freezing and
corros ion pro tection agents. Only use the fol low­
in g coolant add it ives. The se addi tives may be
mixed wit h each other.
Coolant additive Specification
G13 TL 7
74)
G12 ++ TL 774 G
T he amount of coo lant additive that needs to be
mixed with water depends on the climate where
the vehicle will be ope rated. If the coolant addi­
tive percentage is too low, the coolant can freeze
and damage the eng ine.
Coolant Freeze protec-
additive tion
Warm reg ions min . 40% m in. -13 °F
max. 45% (-
25
°()
Cold regions min . 50% max . -40 °F
max. 55% (-40
°()
Checking and Filling
(D Note
-
Before the start of w inte r, have you r auth or­
ized Aud i dealer or a uthorized Aud i Serv ice
Facility check if the coolant addit ive in your
vehicle matches the pe rcentage appropriate
for the climate. This is especially important
when driving in colder climates .
- If the appropr iate coo lant add itive is not
availab le in an emergency, do not add any
other additive. Yo u could damage the en­
gine. If this happens, on ly use water and re­
store t he corre ct m ix tu re ratio with the
specified coolant ad ditive as soon as poss i­
ble.
- O nly refill w ith new coolant.
- Radiator sea lant must not be mi xed with
the coolant.
Adding coolant
Fig . 1 64 En g in e compa rtment: ma rki ngs o n the coolant
expans ion
t ank
Read and follow the WARNINGS befo re check­
ing anything in the engine compartment
i=> page 188, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
Che cking the engine coolant level
.. Park your vehicle on a leve l su rface .
.. Switch t he ignition off .
.. Read the coolant level on the coolant expansion
tank ¢
fig. 164. The coolant level must be be­
tween the markings when the eng ine in cold .
When the eng ine is warm it can be slig htly
above the upper marking.
195

<( co ..... N
" N ..... 0 r--. > 00
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
Fig. 165 Engine compartment : cover on t he brake fluid
reservoir (examp le)
"' N N
~ .,
Before you check anything in the engine compart­
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
¢page 188, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
.,. Read the brake fluid level from the brake fluid
reservoir
~fig. 165, ¢page 191, fig. 161 . The
brake fluid level must be between the "MIN"
and "MAX" markings .
The location of the brake fluid reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
¢page 191.
The fluid level may drop slightly after some time
due to the automatic adjustment of the brake
pads . This is not cause for alarm.
I f the brake fluid level falls
considerably below
the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indicator
light
1111 (U.S. mode ls)/ . (Canadian models)
will come on¢
page 15. Do not continue to oper­
ate the vehicle . The complete brake system
should be thoroughly checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or other qualified facility and the
cause corrected. If the brake fluid level is too
low, the brake warning/indicator light will illumi­
nate. Contact an authorized Audi dealer
immedi­
ately.
Checking and Filling
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experienced
technician.
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If the
water content in the brake fluid is too high, cor­
rosion in the brake system may result after ape ­
riod of time . The boiling point of the brake fluid
will also decrease considerably and decrease braking performance.
Therefore, the brake fluid must be changed
every
two years. Always use new brake fluid which con­
forms to Federal Motor Vehicle Standard "FMVSS
116 DO T 4" .
The brake fluid reservoir can be difficult to reach,
therefore, we recommend that you have the
brake fluid changed by your author ized
Audi
dealer. Your dealer has the correct tools, the
right brake fluid and the know-how to do this for
you.
A WARNING
- Brake fluid is poisonous. It must be stored
only in the closed original container out of
the reach of children!
- Brake failure can result from old or inappro­
priate brake fluid . Observe these precau­
tions:
- Use only brake fluid that meets SAE speci­
fication
J 1703 and conforms to Federal
Motor Vehicle Standard 116. Always check
with your authorized Audi dealer to make
sure you are using the correct brake fluid .
The correct type of brake fluid is also indi­
cated on the brake fluid reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use of
the brakes can cause a vapor lock if the
brake fluid is left in the system too long.
This can seriously affect the efficiency of
the brakes as well as your safety. This
could result in an accident.
(D Note
Brake fluid will damage the paint of your vehi-
cle. ..,.
197

Check ing and F illing
with all environmental regulations. D isposing
of vehicle batteries improperly is very danger­
ous to the env ironment .
Windshield washer
system
F ig. 16 7 Engin e co mpartment : washer fluid reservoir cap
"' N
-N
" 0:, lD
The washer flu id reservoir§ contains the wind­
shie ld wash er fluid
¢ page 191, fig. 161. The res­
ervoir capacity is found in
9 page 251.
.. Read and follow a ll WARNINGS before wo rking
in the engine compartment ¢
page 188, Work­
ing in the engine compartment.
.. Open the cap .
.. Add the washer fluid and close the cap .
To reduce the risk of lime sca le deposits on the
spray nozzles, use clean water w ith low amounts
of calc ium . A lways add window cleaner to the wa­
t er. When the outs ide temperatures are co ld, an
anti-freezing agent should be added to the water
so that it does not freeze .
(D Note
-The concentration of anti-freezing agent
must be ad justed to the vehicle operating
cond itions in the respect ive climate . A con­
ce ntration that is too high can lead to veh i­
cle damage.
- Neve r add rad iator ant i-freeze or ot her addi­
tives to the washe r fl uid .
- Do not use a glass cleaner that conta ins
paint solvents, beca use this cou ld damage
the pa int.
202
Service interval display
T he service interval display detects when your ve­
hicle is due for service.
The service interval display works in two stages :
-Inspe cti on or oil change reminder: afte r a cer-
tain dis tan ce dr ive n, a message appears in the
instrument cluster display each t ime the igni ­
tion is switched on or off . The remaining dis­
tance or tim e is disp layed briefly.
- Inspection or oil change due : if your vehicl e
has reached an inspection or oil change inte rval
or both intervals at the same t ime, the mes­
sage
Inspection due! or Oil change due! or Oil
change and inspection d ue!
appears briefly af­
ter switching the ignition on/off.
Check ing ser vice inter vals
You can check the remaining d istance or t ime un­
ti l the next oi l change or next inspection in the
MMI. Select the
i MENU I button> Car> Systems *
control button > Ser vice & control > Service in ­
tervals .
Resetting the indic ator
Your a uthorized Audi dea ler or authorized Audi
Service Facility w ill reset the service interva l dis­
play after perform ing service .
If you perform an o il change yourse lf to the Audi
specifications, you must reset the service interval
display .
To rese t the disp lay, select the
I MENU I but ton>
Car > Systems * control button > Service & con­
t rol > Service inter vals > Re set oil change inter ·
val.
(D Note
- Only reset the oil c hange indicator if the oi l
was changed .
- Following the service in terva ls is cr itica l to
mainta ining the se rvice life and val ue of
your vehicle, especially the engine. Even if
the mileage on the ve hicle is low, do not ex­
ceed the time for the next service.
- Calculat ing the time to the next oil change
is inte rrupted when the vehicle battery is

Tires and wheels
Tires and wheels
Wheels
General information
~check your tires regularly for
damage (punctures, cuts, cracks
and bulges). Remove foreign ob­
jects from the tire tread.
~ If driving over curbs or similar
obstacles, drive slowly and ap ­
proach the curb at an angle.
~ Have faulty tires or rims re­
placed immediately.
~ Protect your tires from oil,
grease and fuel.
~ Mark tires before removing
them so that the same running direction can be maintained if
they are reinstalled .
~ Lay tires flat when storing and
store them in a cool, dry location
with as little exposure to light as possible.
(i}) Note
-Please note that summer and winter tires are designed for
the conditions that are typical i n those seasons. Audi recom­
mends using winter tires dur­
i ng the winter months. Low
temperatures significantly de­ crease the elasticity of summ­
er tires, which affects traction
204
and braking ability. If summer
tires are used in very cold
temperatures, cracks can form on the tread bars, resulting in
permanent tire damage that
can cause loud driving noise
and unbalanced tires.
-Burnished, polished or chromed rims must not be used in winter driving condi­
tions. The surface of the r ims
does not have sufficient corro­
sion protection for th is and
could be permanently dam­
aged by road salt or similar
substances.
Tire designations
Fig. 168 Tire specifi cation codes on the
sidewall of a tire .,._